Landtag
Schwerin Castle
Schwerin Castle (German: Schweriner Schloss) is a castle located in the city of Schwerin, the capital of the Bundesland of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. For centuries it was the home of the dukes and grand dukes of Mecklenburg and later Mecklenburg-Schwerin. It currently serves as the seat of the state parliament.
Schwerin Castle
First reports of a castle on the
location were made by the Sephardic merchant Ibrahim ibn Jacub in 973, who
travelled through the Slavic areas of Europe. There was a fort of the Polabian
Slav tribe of the Obotrites on an island in the large Lake of Schwerin.
In 1160, the fort became a target of Germanic noblemen planning to expand their
territory eastward under the leadership of Henry the Lion (1129-1195). The
Obotrites under Niklot destroyed the fort but left because of the Germanic
military dominance.
However, the German conquerors recognized the strategic and aesthetically
interesting location of the island and started building a new fort. The
foundation of the city of Schwerin took place in the same year. Schwerin became
seat of a bishopric.
In 1167, Henry gave the County of Schwerin to his vassal Gunzelin von Hagen, and
the rest of the country around the city was returned to Niklot's son Pribislav,
forming a ducal hereditary line that lasted until 1918.
In 1358, the County of Schwerin was bought by the descendants of Niklot, who had
been elevated to Dukes of Mecklenburg in 1348. Soon, they relocated farther
inland from Mikelenburg, near the city of Wismar, to Schwerin. During the late
Gothic era, the growing prosperity and position of the dukes lead to a growing
need for a representative castle, and this meant architectural changes to the
fortress settlement. The Bishop's House (German Bischofshaus) from that period
remains intact.
Under Duke Johann Albrecht I. (1525-1576), the castle saw some important
changes. The fort became a castle, and the defensive functionality of the
fortress was replaced with ornamentation and concessions to comfort. The use of
terracotta during the Renaissance was dominant in North German architecture, and
Schwerin's terracotta was supplied from Lübeck.
castle's chapel
A few years after reworking the castle itself, from 1560 to 1563, Johann Albrecht rebuilt the castle's chapel. It became the first new Protestant church of the state. The architecture was inspired by churches in Torgau and Dresden. The Venetian Renaissance gate, its gable showing the carrying of the cross, was made by Hans Walther (1526-1600), a sculptor from Dresden. Windows on the northern face show biblical illustrations by well-known Dutch artist Willem van den Broecke (called "Paludanus") (1530-1580).
As the castle needed additional defenses, despite its island site, some time in
the middle of the 16th century bastions were established to the north-west,
south-west and south-east. They were probably built by the same Italian
architects who, under Francesco a Bornau, also worked in Dömitz. The bastions
were later modified several times, but they are still standing today.
next to the old sycamore tree
Before the Thirty Years' War, the architect Ghert Evert Piloot, who had entered Mecklenburg's service in 1612, made plans to completely rebuild the castle in the style of the Dutch Renaissance. In 1617, work began under his supervision, but soon had to cease due to the war. Piloot's plans were later partially put into practice between 1635 and 1643: the house above the castle kitchen and that above the chapel were razed and given Dutch Renaissance style façades.
During this period, a half-timbered building was constructed near the chapel to
house the archducal collection of paintings. Also, the Teepavillon (tea house)
was built.
The court moved to Schloss Ludwigslust in 1756.
the tower
In 1837, the ducal residence moved back to Schwerin, but the building was in relatively bad condition. Additionally, the Grand Duke didn't like the individual buildings' incongruent origins and architectural styles.
chapel on the right
Grand Duke Friedrich (1800-1842) decided to rebuild the castle, and ordered his architect Georg Adolph Demmler (1804-1886) to do so. A few months later, construction was halted by his successor, Friedrich Franz II (1823-1883), who wanted a complete reconstruction of the historic site. Only some parts of the building from the 16th and 17th century were kept.
Dresden architect Gottfried Semper (1803-1879) and Berlin architect Friedrich
August Stüler (1800-1865) could not convince the grand duke of their plans.
Instead, Demmler included elements of both of them into his plan, but would find
inspiration in French Renaissance castles. It became the most admired master
work of the student of Karl Friedrich Schinkel. He also planned a government
building in 1825-26 located at Schlossstraße (today the State Chancellery).
Renaissance châteaux of the Loire valley such as Chambord also inspired him and
contributed to the construction from 1843 until 1851.
Niklot
His successor Stüler, again, changed a few things, and included a statue of Niklot on horseback, and the pompous cupola. For the interior design, Heinrich Strack (1805-1880) from Berlin was chosen. Most of the work was done by craftsmen from Schwerin and Berlin.
There was a fire in the castle in December 1913. The revolution in 1918 resulted
in the abdication of the Grand Duke, but only the exterior reconstruction had
been completed. It later became a museum and in 1948 the seat of parliament. The
German Democratic Republic, opposed to nobility, used it as a college for
kindergarten teachers from 1952-1981. Then it was a Museum again until 1993. The
Orangerie had been a technical museum since 1961. From 1974 on, some renovated
rooms were used as an art museum.
Orangerie
Since late 1990, it is once again a place of government and representation as the seat of the parliament of State of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern. Since then, massive renovation efforts have been conducted and are, due to the complexity of a castle of this size, still in progress.
Text from Wikipedia
plaque monument to Auguste
standing guard
grebes in the lake
boat for lake tours
